10 Pleasant Picnic Crafts for Preschoolers

| Last Updated: January 20, 2023

Since the temperature is in the ideal setting of neither too cold nor too hot, people are excited about the idea of a picnic. Having picnics is extremely delightful, primarily for preschoolers! 

Here are some pleasant and engaging picnic crafts that will guarantee your preschool students efficiently exercise their creativity, coordination, and fine motor skills!

Great Picnic Crafts for Preschoolers

Crafting is an excellent method to have a great time with youngsters. It is a wonderful chance to introduce them to some fresh skills, such as following instructions and utilizing their imagination.

Allow this adorable list of picnic crafts for children to motivate you to load a meal in your picnic basket and head to a lovely place! But remember… Keep an eye out for ants!

Creative | Shapes | Fine Motor Skills

1. Fun-filled Picnic Blanket Collage Art

Thrilling picnic art and craft projects for preschoolers can enhance their creative capabilities, including retaining knowledge about patterns, shapes, and colors. 

The cut-and-paste artwork project is best suitable for kids aged 3 and above. Children can train their hand strength and mobility by performing this art craft which includes weaving, tracing, and cutting shapes.

Kids will truly enjoy making this picnic blanket art. You can have your own with just a few materials such as:

  • Different colors of construction paper
  • Glue
  • Markers or crayons 
  • Scissors

To make the collage art activity, cut both white and red paper into the same width. But when cutting, keep the red paper whole by leaving an inch on the outer edge. 

Then weave them together, in and out, to make a pretty blanket. You can glue the white strips to the red base paper by adding glue to the ends.

After completing the picnic blanket, allow the children to trace some basic food shapes with the use of colored construction paper. Alternatively, you can use a magazine to collect food cutouts.

To understand more about weaving and collage art crafts, you should visit https://creativefamilyfun.net/.

Coordination | Creative | Cutting

2. Adorable Paper Bag Picnic Basket

Photo credit: numberdyslexia.com

Finally, the time for picnics and party celebrations is upon everyone. 

The paper bag picnic basket art craft can be utilized for forthcoming parties, pretend plays, or simply for a delightful lunch with kids. You can organize picnic baskets loaded with foods for kids, like cheese and sliced sausage, goldfish crackers, oranges, and fruit juices.

Juveniles aged three to four can participate in this art craft.

Cutting provides young kids with independent motions of the individual finger. Using scissors exercises the hand and toughens the muscles in the area. Bilateral coordination is likewise improved when a kid uses scissors and paper while using both hands.

To do the activity, you should construct a picnic basket made from:

  • Paper bags
  • Glue
  • Stapler
  • Scissors
  • Variety of decorative items

Begin by dividing the paper bag into three parts. The top part can be dumped, the middle part will be the handle, and the bottom part of the paper bag will be the basket itself. 

Then, cut the handle part to create one strip (consider folding it over to make a thick base). Staple it to the basket. 

Children will all certainly cherish their own picnic baskets and will likely take them home!

To make the art activity possible, you can get more information at http://numberdyslexia.com/.

Social | Shapes | Patterns

3. Creative Felt Picnic Food Craft

Uplift kids’ spirits with some imaginative play outdoors. When it’s pouring outside, simply lay a blanket in the center of the living room and let it be an experience.  

With that in mind, creating a picnic playset is excellent because it prepares kids for greater fine motor functioning.

The key element is that it is intended for children aged 3 to 5.

Pretend play aids in problem-solving, socialization, and imagination. Making this routine can empower them to express their creativity and social skills while also improving their shape and pattern recognition!

To make the art activity, you need items such as:

  • Felt in different colors
  • Scissors
  • Fabric marker or sharpie 

Initiate by tracing pretend food shapes into the felt. Then, just cut them following the lines that you created. 

Put in mind that you can incorporate a combination of food such as lettuce, tomato, bread slices, cheese slices, meat slices, cookies, and a piece of watermelon. Moreover, you can modify the kind of food you incorporate to suit your tastes. 

When you’re feeling particularly bold, you can sew pretend food items and fill them inside with stuffing to produce more dimensional objects. The kids, on the other hand, adore these felt pieces.

If you want more details about the felt picnic food playset, check out http://preschoolinspirations.com/.

Creative | Fine Motor Skills | Social

4. Cute Bear-Themed Party Bags

Photo credit: makeandtakes.com

Putting together a bear-themed picnic and celebrating with your loved ones will be a blast! Children will enjoy seeing their favorite animal be brought to life!

The art activity is highly suitable for kids aged three and up. The bear-themed party bags will absolutely boost their creativity, motor skills, and pattern recognition.

You may allow the kids to add a few extra items to their festive party bags, such as a tiny bear toy, or gummy bears! Kids can also swap and share items with other children! The activity will undeniably enhance their interpersonal skills.

To complete this activity, you must have the following materials:

  • Brown paper bags
  • Red art paper
  • Black marker or crayon
  • Scissors
  • Glue

First, cut the top part of the brown paper bag to make bear ears. Second, with your crayon, draw a cute bear head onto the middle section of the paper bag. 

Third, fill it with the desired food item; and close the top with glue, staple, or tape. Fourth, adhere the ears to the upper edge of the bag. To complete the bear party bag, make a red hat using red paper and glue it at the top. 

Similar to this, there are other activities you could do with the kids. You may find them at makeandtakes.com.

Colors | Creative | Counting

5. Colorful Watermelon-Themed Paper Fan

Photo credit: kidsartncraft.com

Putting together an awesome art and craft project for youngsters can be an excellent opportunity for them to know more about shapes, colors, and patterns!

Keep cool this season with the simple and fun paper fan fruit craft for children! 

The activity is a fun method for increasing children’s creativity and fine motor skills. Even so, this task might be the most effective way to improve their recognition of colors and patterns. This is perfect for kids aged 2 to 8. 

For this art project, you will need certain supplies which are:

  • Paper plates
  • Large crafting sticks
  • Masking tape
  • Tempera paint
  • Paintbrush
  • Cotton swabs 

To start the watermelon craft, paint the paper plate with tempera paint (pink at the center and green at the rim). Next, make seeds with the kids using black tempera paint and a cotton swab. 

Fold it in half and attach a craft stick for the fan’s handle. The outer rim can then be sealed with a stapler.

Let the kids count the number of seeds as they work, which will allow you to sneak in a few early math practices as you construct this project. Also, allow the youngsters to customize their own watermelon to encourage creativity!

Visit www.kidsartncraft.com to learn more about the art project and get similar ideas.

Shapes | Coordination | Fine Motor Skills

6. Simple Apple Pie Slice Craft

Everyone loves a slice of apple pie made from the heart!

The Popsicle Stick Apple Pie Slice art activity benefits children as young as four who require a lot of work with developing coordination, fine motor skills, and shape recognition.

On top of that, the activity is a fantastic way to spend quality time and do pretend play with the children, which is excellent for social training!  

You can just grab some colorful plastic plates and arrange the finished items on top for some imaginative playtime! Remember the tea cups and forks to complete the picture!

To execute the apple pie slice art craft, you will require the following:

  • Jumbo popsicle sticks
  • Markers
  • School glue
  • Craft scissors
  • Brown cardstock paper
  • White cotton balls

To construct the apple pie slice, make a triangle with the use of three giant popsicle sticks and glue them. Get tan cardstock for the center part of the pie and brown cardstock for the pie crust; cut them according to the size of the wooden triangle. 

Then, glue the two pieces to the wooden triangle skeleton. Next, design a whipped cream out of a cotton ball to the center. Finish off by drawing some crust holes using black markers.

For more activity ideas suitable for young children, go to https://www.gluedtomycraftsblog.com/.

Outdoor Activities | Sensory | Fine Motor Skills

7. “A” is for Apple Paper Plate

Photo credit: happyhooligans.ca

Making a “letter A” or preschool apple-themed project for the classroom is enjoyable, especially when you do it with the kids.  

The activity is especially suitable for 3-year-old preschoolers who are just starting with new experiences. Through the art project, they will significantly enhance their fine motor abilities, creativity, shape recognition, and general awareness of their surroundings.

To keep the project more exciting, you can replace the apple seed with coffee beans, which provide a sensory aspect to our exercise. Coffee beans are great for kids to examine, plus they smell wonderful!

To make the art activity, you should get:

  • Paper plates
  • Glue
  • Paintbrush
  • Paint
  • Coffee beans
  • leaf and stem from plants in your garden, or a bunch of artificial flowers

Start by painting the edge of the paper plate with red or green paint. To create the apple core shape, cut a C-shaped into the two sides of the plate. 

Next, you can add some seeds to the apple core by gluing it to the center portion. To finish the task, glue some stems with leaves to the tops. 

Using shades of a similar color educates the youngsters about shadows, contrast, and highlights while adding depth and appeal to the project!

To better understand art activity, do visit https://happyhooligans.ca/.

Fine Motor Skills | Creative | Cutting

8. Easy Fingerprints Ant Craft

PHoto credit: twitchetts.com

Spring is a good season to recreate with children. There are suns, hearts, and flowers. However, bugs are also present everywhere! Adorable bugs, like little ants.

The ant project is highly recommended for preschool-aged children. This will absolutely strengthen their ingenuity and encourage fine motor development since it incorporates cutting training.

Also, the simple fingerprint project can be utilized in a variety of ways. You can hang them in the classroom or present them as gifts!

To make the ant craft, begin by gathering items such as:

  • Black paint
  • Cutter
  • Colored Paper (white, red, and pink)
  • Scissors
  • Black pen
  • Glue stick. 

To create the activity, cut one-inch strips of pink and red paper. Glue the pink strips horizontally and vertically into the white paper, equidistant from one another. Next, cut the red strips into squares, then glue those to the intersection of the pink lines. 

Create the ant’s body by dotting consecutive fingerprints with black paint. Then, get a marker or black pen to draw tiny legs.

Note that you can save time by cutting the paper strips in advance. Also, you can attach your paint palettes to the desk to prevent messes.

Explore https://twitchetts.com/ to read more about the activity. You could also find a variety of other projects to incorporate into your own class!

Coloring | Creative | Fine Motor Skills

9. Pasta Ants Art Activity

Children constantly like playing various characters. Some days they like Disney characters like Elsa from “Frozen,” while other days, they pretend to be different little animals.

This art project is mainly designed for juveniles around age three. Allow the children to showcase themselves by coloring their ants in various colors. Allow them to do imaginative play, as well. 

As a result, the activity will greatly reinforce their social, creative, coloring skills, and fine motor skills, which are essential for the growth of preschool children.

For this pasta ant craft, you should get materials like:

  • Pasta
  • Hot glue
  • Black paint
  • Googly eyes

To make your own, attach the three pasta shells side by side with hot glue. Make legs by gluing pasta elbows to the body. 

For the antenna, put two little spaghetti strands on the head. Paint it in the desired color. Finish off with some googly eyes. 

Furthermore, you may create a pasta tree project by simply using pasta for the leaves.

More details on the art activity may be found at https://thepinterestedparent.com/.

Language | Tracing | Fine Motor Skills

10. Festive Magazine Picnic Collage

Photo credit: readingconfetti.com

A collage is a basic craft project that entails pasting things such as leaves or images onto a piece of paper.

Creating a collage incorporates cutting and tracing, which can help children increase their hand strength and flexibility. It’s also an excellent opportunity for children to learn about texture and color at a young age. 

The art project is beneficial for children aged two to six. It is important to note that you can communicate with the youngsters about their collage since this will aid their language development. Moreover, you can read a book before, during, or after to help them develop their listening skills.

To create this picnic collage, you need the following:

  • Gingham scrapbook paper
  • Scissors
  • Magazines
  • Glue

To construct a picnic blanket, attach the food cuttings to gingham craft paper or any paper similar to this one. Then, dip a finger in colored paint, push the finger onto the paper to make three dots, and add features using a black marker. 

Let the children take the lead in the activity. Also, allow them to cut out photographs of their preferred picnic foods from magazines. 

You may find out more information about the art activity at www.readingconfetti.com.

Conclusion

Engaging preschool children in these great picnic art craft projects will enhance their ability to recognize shapes, patterns, and colors. This will also significantly reinforce their creativity, coordination, and fine motor skills.

Also, the list will promote new skills, such as following instructions and operating their imagination while having a lot of fun!



Hi, I'm Amanda! Welcome to Education Outside! Im passionate about educating young minds and helping parents/teachers by providing easy and effective teaching resources. Check out all of my teaching resources on my Teachers Pay Teachers store.

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